


Making Bail

by snarkymuch



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies)
Genre: Gen, Ned Leeds Centric, Ned Leeds Gets Arrested, Ned Leeds Needs a Hug, Reassuring Tony Stark, Tony Stark is Good With Kids, Worried Ned Leeds
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-12
Updated: 2020-11-12
Packaged: 2021-03-09 21:40:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,578
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27533149
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/snarkymuch/pseuds/snarkymuch
Summary: EveningInHornersCorners asked for a Ned & Tony fic where Tony helps Ned out of a tough situation. I decided to have Tony bailing Ned out.ORNed stresses as he awaits his fate after being arrested, he has no one to rescue him, but to his surprise, Tony Stark walks into the room and things start looking up. Apparently, Tony sees Ned as one of his people, too.
Relationships: Ned Leeds & Tony Stark
Comments: 26
Kudos: 89





	Making Bail

**Author's Note:**

  * For [EveningInHornersCorners](https://archiveofourown.org/users/EveningInHornersCorners/gifts).



> Sorry, this took a bit to get done. It was in my prompt folder for over a month I think. Please forgive me EveningInHornersCorners for taking so long.

Ned sat in the empty room, staring at his reflection in the smudged mirror. A fan hummed somewhere in the ducts, and the sound of people bustling about drifted through the closed door.

He shifted in his chair. He knew that he was probably being watched. The chair he was sitting in was bolted to the floor, and he assumed the table was too, driving home the point that this was where criminals sat while they awaited their fate. 

It was everything and nothing like the police stations on TV. His anxiety cranked up another notch, and he let out a hesitant breath. It felt uncomfortably hot in the room, and he wondered if it was on purpose, a way to break him down and make him crack. God, were they going to play good cop, bad cop? He hoped not. He’d probably crack, and he didn’t even do anything wrong.

Ned still wasn’t sure exactly how he got tangled in this mess. He’d only been hacking a few video feeds of cameras near the warehouses where some people had gone missing. There had been a lot of disappearances lately, and he and Peter were trying to get to the bottom of it. Ned knew the police were looking into it, too. It just didn’t occur to him that they might stumble upon him in the process. Somehow they’d traced things back right to his bedroom.

He’d tried to proclaim his innocence, but they didn’t listen. He was embarrassed to admit that he’d called out for his mother when the police handcuffed him. They said they would get ahold of her and bring her to the station. He hadn’t heard anything since. He dreaded seeing his mother. She wouldn’t understand, and she’d probably cry, and Ned hated it when his mother cried. He hoped she’d be mad instead. He didn’t want to see her disappointed. 

His watch said it had been an hour since he was told to sit in the room. It was a waiting game now, and Ned was terrible about staying calm. His heart was racing in his chest, and sweat trickled down his neck. His deodorant was barely working. 

The only thing he could do to pass the time was try to think of an excuse, so he didn’t expose Peter. It wasn’t like he could come out and say that he was helping Spider-Man. They were going to want to know why he was snooping around the crime scenes, even if he had only done it virtually. They’d want to know what he was looking for. He didn’t know what he would say. He was in so much trouble. 

Ned frowned at himself in the mirror, then blew out a heavy breath, scrubbing a hand over his face. He had to be smart about this. Peter was counting on him. He was scared, though. He didn’t have Mr. Stark to smooth this over. He didn’t have Happy to call. Peter had a full support system. His aunt knew about Spider-Man, and she might get mad, but she would understand. Ned didn’t have anyone. He couldn’t tell his mom the truth, and that hurt. He would have to lie, and he might not be able to get out of this. 

He heard the doorknob turn a second before the door opened, and he turned in his seat to look. He was expecting his mother, or maybe the detectives, but he wasn’t expecting the man who walked in, wearing a stained, faded band tee and designer jeans. Ned stopped breathing as he tried to wrap his head around the fact that Tony Stark was standing in the room, looking at him with a serious expression. 

Ned stuttered, opening and closing his mouth a few times. 

Had Peter been caught, too? Was that why Mr. Stark was here? Did he come to make sure Ned didn’t spill Peter’s secret? 

“Easy, kid. Try not to think so much. Your eyes are practically bugging out of your head.”

“But—what’s going on?” 

“Getting you out of here. My lawyer is finishing up in the other room. Shouldn’t be long.”

“What? How’d you know I was here? I don’t understand. Am I going to jail? What’s going on? I can’t afford a lawyer.”

Tony shook his head, then pinched the bridge of his nose. Dropping his hand, he met Ned’s gaze. “One thing at a time. Don’t make me regret coming down here at seven PM on a Tuesday instead of finishing my New Girl binge on Netflix.”

Ned opened his mouth to ask something, what he wasn’t sure, but Tony put up a hand and stopped him. Ned snapped his mouth closed and let Tony continue. 

“I know what’s going on because believe it or not, I do care what happens to you. We might not have a close relationship, I get that, but you’re important to Peter, so your important to me.”

Ned’s eyes went wide. “Oh my god. What is going on? This is insane.”

“Maybe a little, but it’s a good thing I get protective over my people because when your name was flagged, and I was alerted. I have to say, I expected to see Peter’s name beside yours. I did question whether I should come, but hacking into the suit aside, I knew you were a good kid, and I’m sure there’s a good explanation for what happened.”

“I didn’t have anything to do with the missing people. You gotta believe me.”

“Easy, kid. I believe you. And if the police got their heads out of their asses, they’d see it, too, which brings me to the next point. You’re not going to jail. I’ve got my lawyer out there smoothing this over right now. Worst case, you might need to do some community service, which isn’t that bad. But I think my lawyers might be able to make this go away, so just keep quiet. It’s nothing to bail you out.”

“Oh, that’s—that’s good, I guess. What about my mom? Is she here? She’s got to be so worried.”

“I called her, actually.”

“Oh my god, Tony Stark called my mom. Can I die now?” Ned buried his face in his hands, drawing a chuckle from Mr. Stark. 

“She’s coming down to sign you out, only a guardian can do that, but I did tell her this wasn’t your fault. I explained it was a misunderstanding, though she was a little disbelieving that Tony Stark was bailing her son out.”

Ned dropped his hands from his face and looked at Mr. Stark. “What did you tell her?”

“That you’ve been helping Peter with his internship, and I have a vested interest in you.”

“So, you bailed out her son?” Ned raised his brows.

Tony scrunched his nose. “Eh, it sounded better in my head. I’ll give you that. But it’s fine. All that matters is that I’m here now.”

Ned frowned. “Did she sound upset? Is she mad, or was she crying? Because my mom tends to be a crier. Every year at least one Superbowl commercial has her in hysterics.”

Tony winced, shrugging. “Maybe, honestly, I couldn’t get a good read on her.”

“I hope she’s just mad. I hate it when she cries.” Ned would rather her scream at him. He hated it when she worried about him. He didn’t want to stress her out, but that ship had probably sailed. 

“If she cries, it’s only because she loves you. I know this from years of experience and therapy.”

Ned’s squinted at him. “That’s—thanks, I guess.”

Tony waved him off. “So, I was thinking. Once you’re ungrounded or whatever, maybe you could swing by the tower, and, I don’t know, we could tinker on some tech or something. Bond and all that jazz?”

“Are you serious?”

“Deadly. I mean it. It’s about time we bettered our relationship. Who knew it would someone getting arrested do it. Honestly, my money was always on Peter for getting arrested first.” Tony laughed.

Ned shook his head. “This is all crazy. It’s like my best and worst dreams come true at once.”

Tony’s eyes softened, and he smiled. “Sit tight, kid. I’ll go check with the lawyers and see if your mother is here. Maybe I can calm her down a little before she sees you.”

“Okay, yeah, that sounds good. Are you coming back?”

“I’m not leaving here without you. Besides, I want to talk more about what you were doing. It seems that you and Peter might be a little in over your heads.”

Ned nodded, licking his lips. “We were only trying to help.”

“I know you were.” Tony sighed. “I’ll be back. Stay put. It won’t be long.”

Tony left, and Ned found himself staring at the closed door. His head was spinning. The fear and dread he’d been filled with before were still there, but it was muted by an overwhelming wave of relief. Things could still go wrong, and he didn’t think his heart would stop racing until he was back safe at home, but he wasn’t alone. 

He’d been jealous of Peter for having people who’d look after him, but he never thought he’d have Tony Stark bailing him out of jail. Ned had always been a part of Peter’s support system, along with so many others, but for the first time, he realized he had support, too. Maybe things really would work out okay. 

**Author's Note:**

> You can find me on tumblr [here](https://snarky-drabbles.tumblr.com/)


End file.
